Vietnam Foreign Press Center - Vietnam Daily Brief, 2010 July 15

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Vietnam Daily Brief

Vietnam Daily Brief, 2010 July 15

Friday, 16 July 2010

Sacombank supports Vietnamese, Cambodian trade

HCM City (VNA) – The Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank) announced on July 15 that it has put together a credit package to support Vietnamese exporters to Cambodia and Cambodian businesses that import Vietnamese goods.

The package aims to boost trade between both countries and promote the bank’s role in helping Vietnamese businesses to invest in Cambodia .

The package focuses on businesses that export and those that produce essential goods to improve the competitiveness of their prices as well as step up promotions of Vietnamese goods in the Cambodian market.

Under the package, Vietnamese customers who export to Cambodia will enjoy a preferential VND lending interest rate of at least 12 percent per year and their partners in Cambodia will be provided with preferential USD loans at a minimum interest rate of 8 percent per year. The programme will last until October 12, 2010.

Vietnamese businesses that import goods from Cambodia will also get a 30-percent reduction in the fees for transferring money from Vietnam to Cambodia from now until December 31, 2010.-Enditem

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Fatherland Front focuses on major anniversaries

Da Nang (VNA) – The third conference of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee’s Presidium opened in the central city of Da Nang on July 15 under the chairmanship of President Huynh Dam.

During the two-day conference, the participants will review the VFF’s operations in the first half of the year and discuss its major tasks for the second half.

They will examine the preparations for the 80th founding anniversary of the National Front for the Liberation of Southern Vietnam and the elections for the 13th National Assembly and People’s Council at all levels for the 2011-2016 term.

They will also discuss how to enhance their operations and the methods used by the VFF and socio-political organisations while upholding national unity as well as ethnic and religious affairs.

Regarding the major tasks to be taken in the remaining months of 2010, VFF committees at all levels and its member organisations will gather and encourage people from all walks of life to boost emulation movements for the celebrations of the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi. The 65 years since the August Revolution, National Day, 80 years of the founding of the Vietnam National United Front and the 50 years of the founding of the National Front for the Liberation of Southern Vietnam will also be looked at.

The participants acknowledged the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 6.16 percent in the first six months of this year as well as its achievements in generating jobs, eliminating hunger, reducing poverty, providing aid to people involved in natural disasters and preventing and controlling epidemics.

They also applauded the progress made in a several fields including education, training, labour, health care, culture, social affairs, administrative reforms and the fight against corruption.-Enditem

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Japan helps Quang Tri build primary school

Hanoi (VNA) – The Japanese government will provide over 95,700 USD in non-refundable aid to build a primary school in the central province of Quang Tri ’s Gio Linh district.

A contract was subsequently signed at the Japanese Embassy in Hanoi on July 15 by Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Mitsuo Sakaba and Chairman of the Gio Linh People’s Committee Nguyen Huy Hung.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Ambassador Sakaba said that this project will dramatically improve primary education in Gio Linh district and also strengthen friendship and mutual understanding between the two countries.-Enditem

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Strong growth in online labour market

Hanoi (VNA) – The online labour market saw a strong growth in the second quarter of this year, according to the country’s leading provider of online employment services, VietnamWorks.com.

On July 14, VietnamWorks.com released a report with the demand index up by 28 percent over the first quarter and the supply index, up by 27 percent.

The report also said that the demand index has seen a year-on-year increase of 40 percent.

The General Director of VietnamWorks.com, Chris Harvey, said that the 40 percent growth rate means the economy is developing faster and enterprises are more self-confident about recruiting workers to expand their business.

In the second quarter of the year, civil construction, accountancy/auditing, banking, electrical/electronics and engineering had the highest demands for personnel. This was the first time, engineering has made it into the top five leading sectors, replacing aviation/tourism/hotels.

In the reviewed period, Hanoi continued to have the heaviest demands, 10 percent higher than that of Ho Chi Minh City.-Enditem

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Vietnamese Muslims join HIV/AIDS fight

Hanoi (VNA)- A workshop on HIV/AIDS prevention and the fight against discrimination of people with HIV/AIDS took place in Ho Chi Minh City on July 13-14.

The event was jointly held by the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee (VFFCC) and the North Europe organisation.

Deputy Chairman of the VFFCC Ha Van Nui stressed that discrimination is one of the biggest obstacles to preventing HIV/AIDS as well as caring for people with HIV/AIDS.

He said that eliminating social evils, preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS and caring for abandoned children who have the virus are a must for the whole of society.

Over the past few years, all religions but especially Vietnamese Muslims have made a lot of progress when combating HIV/AIDS and discrimination in the community and curbing the number of new patients.

Haji Machdares Samael, the head of Ho Chi Minh City Muslim Representative Committee pledged to actively take part in HIV/AIDS prevention programme and fight the discrimination.-Enditem

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Hanoi proposes halting gateway project

Hanoi (VNA) – Hanoi ’s authorities have asked the National Steering Committee on the 1,000 th Anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi to put a project to build five enormous gates to welcome visitors to the capital city on hold.

The Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee, Nguyen The Thao, announced the details at the closing session of the 21 st meeting of the municipal People’s Council on July 15.

Instead, Hanoi will now decorate the capital with flowers, trees and posters to welcome the 1,000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi, said the Chairman, adding that the funding from local businesses will be used to settle more urgent issues in the capital, as well as general refurbishment and decorating several sites in the capital’s city centre.

According to Thao, Hanoi ’s authorities have received a wide range of opinions regarding the controversial project. Many people have said that the project is necessary as it will spice up the atmosphere during the anniversary and encourage Hanoians to be proud of their city.

However, Thao said that there are many that say the costly project is unnecessary and that the city should use the project’s funding to solve urgent issues and help the poor.

He added that the project has not received a consensus on the actual construction sites or designs of the gates.

Also at the session, the delegates approved a resolution on the city’s socio-economic achievements in the first half of the year and the targets set for the second half as well as the resolution on naming and renaming several streets and public works in the city.

In the remainder of this year, the city will continue to take measures to stabilise its marco-economy, curb inflation, improve investment and the business environment, promote administrative reforms, mobilise investment for development, boost exports and tourism and ease local people’s major concerns.
The city has targeted an economic growth of more than 10 percent this year. –Enditem

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Vietnam unveils its first pipe coating factory

Hanoi (VNA) – A pipe coating factory, the first of its kind in the country, run by the PetroVietnam Investment and Development Joint Stock Company (PVID) under the National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam), was officially inaugurated on July 15.

The factory, located in Phu My 1 Industrial Zone in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau , will help PetroVietnam save on the costs of hiring foreign firms to coat its gas and oil pipelines, and create numerous jobs for locals.

Work on the 517-billion-VND factory started last August.

PVID said that the factory will coat pipelines taking gas from the White Sea Lion, White Rhino and White Tiger oil fields ashore. -Enditem

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Vietnam-US diplomatic ties marked in US

Washington (VNA) – Fifteen years ago, US President Bill Clinton’s announcement on the normalisation of US ties with Vietnam opened a new chapter in the two countries’ relationship, said the Vietnamese Ambassador to the US.

Le Cong Phung was speaking at a reception marking the 15 th anniversary of the normalisation of the Vietnam-US diplomatic ties jointly hosted by the Vietnamese Embassy in the US and the US Department of State in Washington on the morning of July 15 ( Vietnam time).

The function saw the attendance of former US President Bill Clinton, Senators John Kerry and John McCain, and House of Representatives member Eni Faleomavagea.

The Vietnamese ambassador expressed thanks to the participants and other US congressmen for supporting US-Vietnam ties.

He affirmed that gains in the bilateral relationship reflected the determination and will of the two countries’ leaders and people to boost the ties further.

“Although short, the past 15 years laid a firm foundation for the bilateral relationship in the future,” Phung said.

He affirmed that the development of Vietnam-US ties serves the interests of the two nations and their people, contributes actively to peace, stability, prosperity and security of the region and the world, and also helps solve important issues facing the international community.

Addressing the event, former President Clinton recalled the time from 1993 when he took office to 1995 when the two countries officially established diplomatic ties.

He also recalled his meetings with Vietnamese leaders, especially his visit to Vietnam in 2000, and reviewed developments in the two countries’ relationship in various fields.

The former president took this occasion to thank the two governments for helping him establish the Clinton Foundation to support people living with HIV/AIDS in Vietnam .

As an enthusiastic supporter of the normalisation who has made a significant contribution to boosting the US-Vietnam ties, Senator John Kerry recalled efforts made by the two governments during the past two decades towards normalising ties.

He described Vietnam ’s cooperation in the search for US servicemen missing in action during the Vietnam War, prior to and since the two countries normalised ties, as an important factor in bilateral relations.

The senator said he had a profound impression of looking back through the entire history of US-Vietnam ties and congratulated Vietnam on successes it has recorded in the renewal process.

He noted that for the American people, Vietnam is presently not a war, but a country and a friend.

Addressing the function, Senator John McCain said the two countries’ relations have grown strongly and profoundly during the past 15 years, affirming that Vietnam has become one of the US ’s most important and promising trading partners in the Asia-Pacific.

Noting the 30-fold rise in the two countries’ trade value in 2009 over 1995, Senator McCain said this was just a starting point and expressed hope that the two countries’ ties will advance further.

Representing the US State Department at the event, Assistant to the Secretary of State Kurt Campbell cast his mind back to the days when he was involved in the normalisation process.

He said he thought the relationship between Vietnam and the US has a lot of potential for growth.-Enditem

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HIV/AIDS epidemic changes in gender, age group

Hanoi (VNA)- The HIV/AIDS epidemic has changed significantly in gender and age groups, deputy head of Vietnam Administration of HIV/AIDS Control Chu Quoc An said on July 15 at an online meeting to review the fight against the disease in the first six months of the year.

By June 30, the whole country had 176,436 people with HIV/AIDS.
Ho Chi Minh City records the highest number of patients in the nation with 25.9 percent of HIV-infected people, he said.

According to the statistics, there was a major change in the gender ratio among the infected with 70 percent being men and 30 percent being women in 2010. In 2009, the rate was 82 and 18 percent, respectively.

The 20-29 age group makes up 39 percent while the 30-39 age group accounts for 42.6 percent in 2010, against 52 percent and 31 percent in 2009.

An affirmed that HIV/AIDS prevention work has achieved positive results in the first six months of the year, covering 494 districts across 61 cities and provinces, drawing 4,600 collaborators, setting up 315 points for anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment and treating over 42,000 AIDS patients.

However, the work still faces problems, including the overload of patients at ARV treatment facilities, especially in Ho Chi Minh City, the shortage of qualified staff and difficulty of access to HIV infection preventative service for high-risk groups.

At the event, representatives from 18 provinces put forward proposals such as promoting training of HIV/AIDS field staff and providing equipment and human resources for HIV prevention centres in the provinces.-Enditem

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Code of conduct for labour exporters

Hanoi (VNA)- A Code of Conduct for labour exporters, announced in Hanoi on July 15, calls on target businesses to ensure the safe and convenient return of guest workers, especially females, after their labour contracts expire.

The 12-article document, coded CoC-VN, has been published as a manual and covers all steps required by law from business standards, advertisements, personal screening, vocational training, immigration arrangements and protection of guest workers abroad.

The code includes the signing of labour contracts, guest worker repatriation and reintegration, labour disputes and mechanisms for dispute solution, building partnerships and colleague relations between businesses.

The document makes it clear that dismissed guest workers will not pay the cost of their return if they are found not guilty. Exporters are also asked not to lure labour by advertising incomes, bonuses and other benefits higher than the labour contracts they have signed with foreign employers.

Chairman of the Vietnam Labour Exporters’ Association Nguyen Luong Trao said the manual aims to prevent forced labour and human trafficking, especially relating to vulnerable populations such as females. He added it would help exporters abide by not only the national law but also international conventions.--Enditem

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WB helps improve governmental agencies’ capacity

Hanoi (VNA) – The World Bank (WB) and the State Bank of Vietnam on July 15 signed in Hanoi a credit worth 100 million USD to help improve the capacity of Vietnamese governmental agencies.

The amount will help the agencies to make plans and prepare for public investments.

WB Country Director Victoria Kwakwa said raising the speed and quality of project preparation will help facilitate project starts and disbursement, and bring socio-economic benefits to recipients.

A project preparation facility is expected to be launched from October this year and run until October, 2015.

Finance for the facility will be sourced from the International Development Association, WB capital to assist low-income countries.

Victoria Kwakwa also said that with increasing demands for socio-economic development projects, the facility was designed to improve quality of inflow, shorten time of project preparation and enhance the capacity of governmental agencies as well as consultants.-Enditem

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Seminar promotes new gender equality strategy

HCM City (VNA) – A seminar seeking ideas to create a draft national strategy on gender equality for the period of 2011-2020 was held by the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) in Ho Chi Minh City on July 15.

At the seminar, participants expressed concerns over domestic violence, the trafficking of women and children, marriages between Vietnamese women and foreigners, and gender imbalance.

According to MOLISA, Vietnam has gained numerous achievements on gender equality, posting the Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM) of 0.554, ranking 62 nd out of 109 countries.

However, MOLISA said the gender gap is still large in numerous fields, leading to gender inequality and gender imbalance in the country.

For instance, the proportion of female leaders in ministries and local authorities is still low while the current number of woman legislators accounts for only 25.7 percent of the total, failing to meet the National Assembly target of 33 percent.

The retirement age for females, five years earlier than males, is considered one of the reasons behind the low proportion of female leaders in the country, explained some participants.

The government has assigned MOLISA to build the strategy, aiming to ensure all ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies under the government and people’s committees at all levels have female leaders.

Also, the strategy seeks to create more jobs for poor women in rural areas and for ethnic minority women, reduce teen abortions by half, and highlight the problems women suffer from domestic violence, and the trafficking of women and children. -Enditem

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Expo showcases latest IT technologies

HCM City (VNA) - The 15 th Vietnam Computer Electronics World (VCW) Expo opened in Ho Chi Minh City on July 15.

Attracting over 500 stalls from more than 400 leading domestic and foreign companies, the expo showcases the latest electronic and IT products and services in the market.

For the first time, online stalls have been introduced at the event to help enterprises set up their own stalls through programmed databases, enabling them to provide business information and promote products and services to tens of thousands of members of the VCW website.

The latest technologies hardware, software, telecoms, network and entertainment equipment are also on display at the event which will run until July 18.-Enditem

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HCM City hosts e-government conference

HCM City (VNA) – Vietnam will build a public and private cooperation mechanism in building e-government, and rank 63 provinces and cities in terms of information technology (IT) application and e-government implementation, said Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan.

Deputy PM Nhan, who is also Head of the National IT Steering Committee, made the statement at a conference entitled “ Towards high impact e-government and e-governance during 2011 – 2015 period” in HCM City on July 15.

The conference heard that positive results have been recorded in schemes to simplify administrative procedures in State management during the 2007-2010 period and apply IT in State administrative agencies during the 2008-2010 period.

A total of 5,700 administrative procedures and more than 9,000 regulations and guidance on administrative procedures have been digitised.

Administrative reform has helped save around 5.7 trillion VND (300 million USD) per year for organisations, businesses and individuals in the country.

Vice President of the Vietnam IT Association Le Truong Tung cited the United Nations’ report as saying that Vietnam ranks 90 out of 192 countries in IT application in the public sector in 2010.

The participants also focused their discussion on public-private cooperation for the fast development of e-services.

Twenty projects of the national programme on the application of information and communication technologies (ICT) in State agencies during the 2011-2015 period are considered an important part of the Government’s commitment to turn Vietnam into a strong ICT nation, said the conference.-Enditem

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Vietnam wants to boost ties with Australia

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam wants and spares no effort to boosting cooperation with Australia , especially in trade and investment, bringing benefit to both sides, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

At his meeting with former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating in Hanoi on July 15, PM Dung expressed his pleasure with developments in bilateral relations, praising contributions by Paul Keating in his capacity of Australia ’s Prime Minister during the 1991-96 period to promoting bilateral cooperation in many areas.

PM Dung asked Paul Keating to hurry the Australian government into funding Vietnam ’s construction of Cao Lanh bridge in the south and supporting the Thang Long royal citadel as UNESCO’s heritage site.

Regarding cooperation between ASEAN and its partners, PM Dung stressed that Vietnam , like other ASEAN countries, always wants to build a community of peace and development. Vietnam hails new mechanisms in building peace, stability and development in the region, the PM said.

The former Australian PM said he wished that Vietnam as ASEAN Chair would accelerate expansion of cooperation among regional countries, especially the building of new mechanisms for cooperation between ASEAN and non-bloc partners, including Australia .

He said Australian companies wished to cooperate in producing aluminium and also assist with construction of a railway for transportation and consumption of aluminium products.-Enditem

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Canadian parliamentarians visit Vietnam

Hanoi (VNA) – A group of Canadian parliamentarians led by Thai Thi Lac, a Vietnamese-Canadian parliamentarian, is on a working visit to Vietnam .

The visit helped the Canadian parliamentarians better understanding Vietnam ’s socio-economic development and acknowledge prospects for bilateral cooperation, especially in investment and the economy, Thai Thi Lac told Vu Xuan Hong, Chairman of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations, during their meeting in Hanoi on July 15.

Chairman Hong, who is also head of the Vietnam-Canada friendship parliamentarians’ group, and the Canadian parliamentarians shared experience and cooperation in law making between the two countries’ parliaments.

They stressed the need to increase exchanges of visits by delegations in order to enhance relations between the two legislative bodies.

Chairman Hong said he wished that Thai Thi Lac, the first female parliamentarian of the Vietnamese overseas community in Canada and one example of the success of Vietnamese expatriates, would make contributions to fostering future Vietnam-Canada relations.-Enditem

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Vietnam, Sweden discuss gender equality

Hanoi (VNA) – A Vietnamese female high-level delegation led by Ha Thi Khiet, Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation, has visited Sweden to discuss experience in building and implementing gender equality policies.

During the visit from July 12-15, the delegation had working sessions with leaders of the parliament, the ruling party coalition and officials from ministries of foreign affairs, integration and gender equality, and relevant agencies.

Ha Thi Khiet briefed her hosts of Vietnam ’s socio-economic achievements and affirmed the country’s consistent policy of attaching importance and wanting to increase traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation with Sweden .
Swedish leaders, including Parliament Secretary General Anders Forsberg and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Gunnar Wieslander, spoke highly of Vietnam ’s renewal policy and resolve, expressing their pleasure with the southeast Asian nation’s achievements.

They were pleased with the development of friendship and cooperation fostered by both leaders and peoples during the past 40 years. They emphasised the need to lift the level of bilateral ties as Sweden proved its role as an important member of the European Union and Vietnam affirmed its regional and international position.

The two sides need to increase exchanges of visits of high-level delegations and expand trade and investment ties, the leaders agreed.

The visit was part of a project on enhancement of female leadership capacity carried out by Vietnam ’s Foreign Ministry and the United Nations Development Programme.

This was the first visit to Sweden by a Vietnamese female high-level delegation to discuss gender equality as well as to contribute to increased bilateral cooperation in the future.-Enditem

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Hanoi schools to take in ASEAN information

Hanoi (VNA)- From July 15, students and staff from 80 high schools across Hanoi will study ASEAN and its Charter to improve their knowledge about the grouping.

The programme was launched by the municipal Service of Education and Training as a step towards a united and prosperous Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

From now until the end of July, the pilot schools will focus on making plans and conducting information campaigns about the 10-member grouping.

Five students of best knowledge about the issue in each school will represent their schools at a contest of speakers on ASEAN scheduled for late August.

Teachers will also attend relevant training courses, including measures to study documents.

ASEAN groups Brunei , Cambodia , Indonesia , Laos , Malaysia , Myanmar , the Philippines , Singapore and Thailand plus Vietnam which this year holds the presidency.--Enditem

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UN official wraps up Vietnam visit

Hanoi (VNA) – T he UN Independent Expert on minority issues has expressed her good impression at the Vietnamese Government’s priority implementation of ethnic minority policy and its openness in addressing difficulties needing to be solved.

Gay J. McDougall spoke to permanent Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and representatives of Vietnamese agencies and organisations at a working session before concluding her 12-day visit to Vietnam on July 15.

McDougall said her visit was a success and she thanked central and local agencies and organisations for their warm welcome and positive cooperation.

The UN official highlighted Vietnam ’s establishment of specialised agencies and implementation of concrete programmes and targets.

She praised the country’s achievements in socio-economic development, implementing the Millennium Development Goals as well as its endeavours in reducing poverty and improving the living conditions of minority people.

McDougall also commended the Vietnamese Government for paying attention to cultural and language preservation and education which has helped ethnic people enjoy their rights and facilitated their involvement in social life.

The UN expert also held discussions with the Vietnamese representatives about ensuring ethnic people’s rights in all fields and proposed the Vietnamese Government consider promoting bilingual language teaching for ethnic children and continue with its assistance programme to ethnic people in disadvantaged areas.

Vietnam ’s agencies and organisations said they are ready to effectively cooperate with the UN and herself in accordance with Vietnam ’s consistent policy of promoting human rights, including the rights of ethnic people in the country.

During her stay, the UN expert was received by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem and had meetings with a number of State agencies and socio-political, religious and non-governmental organisations in Hanoi , the northern province of Dien Bien, the Central Highlands provinces of Gia Lai and Kon Tum, and the southern province of Tra Vinh.-Enditem

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Buddhists discuss their role in integration era

Can Tho (VNA)- Over 600 monks and nuns from 22 provinces and cities in southeast and southwest regions sat side by side with their clerics at an on-going conference on “Vietnamese Buddhists’ Role in Integration and National Development”.

Most Venerable Thich Thien Duyen, Head of the Central Buddhists Guidance Board, who chairs the conference, highlighted the close-to-2,000 year history of Vietnamese Buddhism which, the cleric said, has been always going up and down with the nation.

“Measures to follow the Buddha’s teachings have, therefore, been adapted to the integration era in an effort to spread the value of Buddhism doctrine in an effective way,” said the senior Buddhist cleric.

The cleric urged the entire Buddhist community to warm up the country’s social life with the light of Buddhism and strengthen unity among different religious communities.

The three-day conference, which was opened in Can Tho city on July 15, is to focus on major issues such as upholding the identity of Buddhist culture, orientation on daily and religious life for Khmers and other ethnic minority groups in the region and experiences in holding religious training courses.

Also high on the event’s agenda are experiences in leading a progressive and happy family life among Buddhists in line with the concept of Buddhism and teachings for younger generations on what to do for the nation in the current integration and development stage.

As part of the conference, there will be many Buddhist-bound programmes such as a camp of Buddhists’ families, charity events, a ceremony to adopt 500 new monks and nuns to the Sangha and preaching courses by lecturers from the Central Department for Propagation of Faith.

On this occasion, the organising board has distributed 900 sets of gifts for poor people across Can Tho city and presented 100 bicycles for poor, gifted students. Organisers also held free medical check-ups and granted medicines and milk for some 1,000 poor patients in the city.—Enditem

First talks held on sinking of Cheonan warship

Seoul (VNA) – The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea armed force on July 15 held their first round of talks with the US-led UN Command (UNC) since the Republic of Korea ’s warship the Chenoan was sunk on March 26, increasing tensions in the region, according to world news reports.

Both sides met at the village of Panmunjeom on the border to discuss the incident, according to a spokesman for the command. Details of the talks between a US and a DPRK colonel were not immediately available.

A multinational investigation led by the RoK has already accused the DPRK of torpedoing the Cheonan, killing 46 sailors.

The DPRK vehemently denied the allegations and has threatened a military response to any attempts to punish it.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council has released a statement without pointing the finger at the DPRK and called on both countries to settle the issue through peaceful solutions.- Enditem

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Parking shortage plagues Ho Chi Minh City

HCM City (VNA) -- There have been many times when Le Van Thanh Tung, a driver working for Bayer Vietnam Company, had to drive around for two or three kilometres to find parking space in downtown HCM City .

After finding space, he said, "I had to sit under the baking sun to keep an eye on the car while waiting for the boss to finish the meeting. Honestly, finding parking space is the biggest worry for drivers."

The city centre does not have a single parking lot.

The People's Committee announced last November it would allow parking on 73 streets for a fee, including 32 streets in District 1.

Along downtown streets like Pham Ngu Lao, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Nguyen Trai, Nguyen Hue, Le Lai, and Ham Nghi, long lines of parked cars can be seen at most times.

Even on narrow streets like Cao Ba Quat, Bui Thi Xuan, Thi Sach, Suong Nguyet Anh, Tran Cao Van, and Nguyen Van Thu, cars parked along the curbs on both sides take up nearly half the road.

These streets have already run out of space since shops and restaurant park their cars all day long here because of the cheap parking fee. Even taxi drivers park here while waiting for fares.

Ha Le An of the Urban Transport Management Division No 1 admitted the parking fees are too low: 5,000 VND –10,000 VND for cars with up to 16 seats.

As a result, there is no parking space left for shoppers and residents.

HCM City has around 427,000 private cars, and 80 more are registered daily.

Assuming an automobile requires 12 square metres for parking, the city needs to have at least 5.12 million square metres (more than 500ha) for parking.

The city has around 11,000 taxis but their operators only have a cumulative 2.5ha of parking space, according to the Department of Transport. The others park in petrol stations or on roads.

Many private parking lots have sprung up to take advantage of the huge demand for parking space. Ngoc Lam, a driver, said he knows of some parking lots in buildings in District 1.

One of them is in Sai Gon Centre at the corner of Pasteur and Le Loi Streets which collects a rather stiff fee based on time.

But despite this, few outsiders' cars can be parked there because vehicles belonging to people working in the building take up almost the entire space, a building security guard said. Havana building on Ham Nghi street charges even more than Sai Gon Centre – 20,000 VND for an hour for regular cars.

Some enterprising people even hire space to set up impromptu parking lots.

Tran Thi Kim Hoang, director of Thien Dai Loi private company, has rented 3,000 square metres at 86 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai street , District 1, and created a car park.

She charges 1.2 million VND a month for each car of up to seven seats.-Enditem

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Vietnam’s tourist sector wastes opportunities

Hanoi (VNA) – Although tourism is one of the key economic sectors that bring in a large amount of foreign currency to the country, each year, the lack of unique organised tours means the sector is losing out on opportunities to develop.

According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), the tourism sector has developed well over the last few years, with international arrivals to the country reaching 3.8 million in 2009, a 15-fold increase compared to 1990 and peaking 4.3 million in 2008.

Last year, although the number of international visitors to Vietnam fell by 10 percent from the previous year, the amount of foreign currency directly earned from tourism still amounted to almost 4 billion USD, after garments, crude oil, footwear and seafood.

In the first months of 2010, when global tourism was still trying to weather the impact of the world’s economic crisis, many Asia-Pacific countries, including Vietnam , remained attractive to international tourists. With a growth rate of more than 30 percent over this period, the World Tourism Organisation ranked Vietnam fourth in tourism growth in the Asia-Pacific region, after Sri Lanka , Arab Saudi and Israel .

In the 2009 report on Travel & Tourism Competitiveness (TTC) announced by the World Economic Forum, Vietnam ranked 11 th out of 133 countries and territories for having competitive prices. This is why many people from overseas are attracted to Vietnam .

In addition, Vietnam has a lot of potential for developing its tourist industry and has also attracted a lot of foreign investors. In 2009 alone, FDI capital into the tourism sector reached 8.8 billion USD, accounting for 41 percent of the country’s total FDI that year.

Besides its material contributions to the national economy, the development of the sector has helped with the country’s economic restructuring, reduced poverty and generated jobs as well revitalised many traditional craft villages.

According to Vietnam ’s Human Resources Development Programme, the tourism sector annually creates millions of job opportunities for workers. During the 1991-2009 period, the amount of people working directly in the sector increased by nearly 20 times from 21,000 to 370,000.

Despite an average growth of close to 17 percent during the same period, a lack of competitiveness remains the largest obstacle for Vietnamese tourism, especially at a time when ASEAN nations are paying more attention to developing their own tourist industries, considering it a major factor for economic growth.

Among the ASEAN countries surveyed in the TTC report, minus Laos and Myanmar , Vietnam only ranks above Cambodia in tourism development. However, with its specific strategies and effective operations, Cambodia ’s tourism sector is becoming stronger and is likely to overtake Vietnam .

According to experts, low competitiveness comes from the fact that Vietnamese tourism does not concentrate on unique products and its services are simple and low quality. The sector does not have a overall development plan, which has resulted in a low rate of long-stay tourists.

In addition, not having a policy of refunding value added tax (VAT) for international tourists to encourage them to spend, as Thailand and Singapore have done, has also made Vietnamese tourism difficult to promote.

At a recent national seminar entitled “developing Vietnamese tourism in the context of international integration” in Hanoi , a number of measures were discussed with a focus on developing special tourism products, promotions and improving the country’s infrastructure and human resources.

The tourism sector has targeted welcoming 4.5 million international visitors in 2010, up 16 percent against last year.-Enditem

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Finance, Budget Committee delegation visits US

Washington (VNA) – A delegation from the National Assembly’s Finance and Budget Committee led by its chairman Phung Quoc Hien visited the US capital city of Washington from July 12 to 15.

During its stay in the US , the delegation met with Senator Robert Foster “Bob” Bennett and Charles Albert Dutch Ruppersberger, a Democratic member of the US House of Representatives.

At the meeting, chairman Hien praised the contributions made by US parliamentarians to boost US-Vietnam relations as well as enhancing ties between the two countries in the past.

He said he hoped that they will continue to bolster bilateral ties in the future.

The Vietnamese delegation also met with several US offices and agencies.-Enditem

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VN-Laos Telecoms connect schools to Internet

Vientiane (VNA) – Unitel, a joint deal between the Laos Asia Telecoms Company and Vietnam ’s military telecom group, Viettel, will connect 1,295 schools in Laos to the Internet.

The agreement was signed by Unitel and the Laotian Education Ministry on July 14.

Unitel’s Vice Director General Kongphet Nhongvongsitthi said that the project will help Laotian pupils and students, especially those in rural and remote areas.

Unitel will provide transmission lines and modems to connect the schools to the Internet from July 2010 to July 2015.

At present, Unitel is the largest telecoms service provider in Laos , having about 1,200 transmission stations, close to 11,000 km of optic cable, and more than 1 million subscribers. -Enditem

US paper highlights US-Vietnam relationship

Washington (VNA) - Since diplomatic relations between the US and modern Vietnam established in July 1995, a very short time, US-Vietnam relations are more impressive, both the depth of the relationship and the outlook for continued deepening, local newspaper reported.

The Hill, a US congressional daily on its July 14 issue reviewed historical milestones in bilateral relations. Since February 14, 1994 when President Bill Clinton lifted the trade embargo, the United States has become Vietnam ’s biggest market and top investor. Economic reforms have lifted millions out of poverty in what is one of the world’s outstanding records on poverty reduction.

“Not only have our two countries signed a historic bilateral trade agreement," said Undersecretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Agricultural Affairs Robert Hormats, "but this agreement has increased trade more than 700 percent from just over 2 billion USD in 2001 to nearly 16 billion USD in 2009.”

According to "The Hill", Vietnam has moved ahead on a variety of other fronts, becoming a leader in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, serving a successful stint at the United Nations Security Council and working hard on broadening its relationship with the US beyond trade.

Vietnam has cooperated with the US on accounting for the many missing US servicemen from the war. Vietnam has always taken the MIA issue as a humanitarian problem, not a military or diplomatic one. National Security Adviser Gen. James Jones recognized that the relationship "... started with the great amount of help and compassion that the Vietnamese government showed in all our efforts to recover those who were missing in action.”

The paper wrote:

“The Political, Security and Defense dialogue, among others, has become an annual event that helps fortify the framework for bilateral relations. Military cooperation today addressed multiple arenas, including peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, disaster response, maritime security, counterterrorism and counternarcotics cooperation, border security, nonproliferation, and exchanges of high-level visits.

“Last month, the bilateral relationship took another important step forward when the two countries inked a nuclear cooperation agreement. Given American proliferation fears, such agreements are not easy to reach. US Ambassador Michael Michalak expressed his hope that “ Vietnam builds on its achievements and implements all relevant international non-proliferation agreements, so that it can become a model for countries seeking to develop civilian nuclear power.” All this indicates that the US has concluded that Vietnam is now a reliable partner in nuclear security and non-proliferation, noted Vietnam expert Carlyle Thayer, who teaches at the Australian Defense Force Academy .”

“The Hill” cited Undersecretary Hormats as writing on a State Department blog: “Our relationship with Vietnam is a pillar of the US ’s presence in Asia . “We don’t agree on everything... But we want to work out our disagreements in a constructive manner.”

National Security Adviser Jones emphasised the need to keep working in the areas of agreement. "Security in the 21st century is far more about how we handle our climate, energy and trade and that kind of scientific cooperation, education, these are things we should be worried about in common. If we able to do that we all prosper and benefit. That is why I think that the future of specifically [the] US and Vietnam [relationship] is very bright."-Enditem

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US firm supports VN’s testing micro-modular data centre

Washington (VNA) - US company Dot VN Inc. and Vietnam Internet Network Information Centre (VNNIC) have signed a memorandum of understanding to conduct a test of elliptical mobile solutions' (EMS) C3-SPEAR Micro-Modular Data Centre equipment at VNNIC's primary Internet data centre in Hanoi .

Accordingly, Dot VN and VNNIC will partner together to evaluate the performance of EMS ' data centre infrastructure technology in a trial that is expected to initially last three months.

The test is aimed at demonstrating the technology's capabilities with the intention of building data centres in Vietnam and Asia based on EMS ' Micro-Modular Data Centre equipment.

VNNIC will be responsible for providing the technical staff who will manage the testing and operation of the data centre unit, while Dot VN will provide support to VNNIC as necessary in the implementation of the test.

"We are extremely excited about the testing that will be performed in Hanoi over the next three months," remarked Dot VN CEO Thomas Johnson.

He continued: " EMS ' C3-SPEAR Micro-Modular Data Centre is cutting edge technology that is both mobile and highly scalable. Given that both the cost and availability of electricity in Vietnam continues to be an ongoing challenge for sustained IT growth, we believe that the C3-SPEAR's industry leading energy efficiency is the ideal solution to overcome this issue."

California-based Dot VN, Inc. (www.DotVN.com) provides innovative Internet and telecommunication services for Vietnam and operates and manages Vietnam 's innovative online media web property, www.INFO.VN.

The company now operates offices in Hanoi , Danang and Ho Chi Minh City.-Enditem

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VN three golds at Asian Junior Chess Champs

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese chess players won three gold and one bronze medals at the Asian Junior Chess Championships 2010, which concluded in Beijing , China , on July 14.

The gold medals belonged to Nguyen Anh Khoa in the men’s U-8 category, Vu Thi Dieu Ai in the women’s U-12 and Nguyen Thi Mai Hung in the women’s U-16.

Meanwhile, the only bronze medal went to Hoang Thi Nhu Y in the women’s U-18 category.

The tournament, which opened in July 9, drew the participation of 428 chess players from 20 countries, including India , Iran and Mongolia . The players competed in such categories as U-8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18 for both men’s and women’s events.

The Chinese, Iranian and Mongolian teams also pocketed three gold individual medals each.

At the Asian Junior Chess Championships 2009, besides two gold individual medals snatched by Hoang Thi Nhu Y in the women’s U-16 and Pham Thanh Phuong Thao in the women’s U-10, Vietnam bagged one silver and one bronze individual medals as well as one gold, two silver and one bronze team medals.-Enditem

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Road upgraded into avenue for city’s birthday

Hanoi (VNA) – The Hanoi People’s Council on July 14 agreed to name the Lang – Hoa Lac street the Thang Long avenue.

The decision was made at a meeting the same day of the council, with 121 favourable votes out of 157.

Thang Long avenue, 28 km long and 140m wide, starts from the intersection with Pham Hung, Khuat Duy Tien and Tran Duy Hung streets, runs though the outskirts districts of Tu Liem, Hoai Duc, Quoc Oai and Thach That and ends at the crossroad with the starting point of Ho Chi Minh Road on the 21A Highway.

Also in the meeting, participants agreed to name and rename 43 roads and streets, two bridges, one park and one museum.- Enditem

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HCM City-based ICT firms honoured

HCM City (VNA) - The Ho Chi Minh City Computer Association (HCA) on July 14 honoured 41 companies and units which achieved good performance in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry.

HCA presented 33 gold medals and 38 Top 5 ICT Cups to these businesses which make up 40 percent of total revenues of the city’s ICT and electronics sector.

Also on July 14, the PC World Vietnam Magazine announced prizes for the most favourite ICT products, the best IT solutions and the most favourite electronic game products in 2010.

Organisers handed over 49 prizes to the winning products that were chosen by more than 30,000 readers of the magazine.-Enditem

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US paper highlights US-Vietnam relationship

Since diplomatic relations between the US and modern Vietnam established in July 1995, a very short time, US-Vietnam relations are more impressive, both the depth of the relationship and the outlook for continued deepening, local newspaper reported.

The Hill, a US congressional daily on its July 14 issue reviewed historical milestones in bilateral relations. Since February 14, 1994 when President Bill Clinton lifted the trade embargo, the United States has become Vietnam’s biggest market. Economic reforms have lifted millions out of poverty in what is one of the world’s outstanding records on poverty reduction.

"Not only have our two countries signed a historic bilateral trade agreement," said Undersecretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Agricultural Affairs Robert Hormats, "but this agreement has increased trade more than 700 percent from just over 2 billion USD in 2001 to nearly 16 billion USD in 2009."

The paper wrote:

"The Political, Security and Defense dialogue, among others, has become an annual event that helps fortify the framework for bilateral relations. Military cooperation today addressed multiple arenas, including peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, disaster response, maritime security, counterterrorism and counternarcotics cooperation, border security, nonproliferation, and exchanges of high-level visits.

"Last month, the bilateral relationship took another important step forward when the two countries inked a nuclear cooperation agreement. Given American proliferation fears, such agreements are not easy to reach. US Ambassador Michael Michalak expressed his hope that " Vietnam builds on its achievements and implements all relevant international non-proliferation agreements, so that it can become a model for countries seeking to develop civilian nuclear power." All this indicates that the US has concluded that Vietnam is now a reliable partner in nuclear security and non-proliferation, noted Vietnam expert Carlyle Thayer, who teaches at the Australian Defense Force Academy ."

"The Hill" cited Undersecretary Hormats as writing on a State Department blog: “Our relationship with Vietnam is a pillar of the US ’s presence in Asia . “We don’t agree on everything... But we want to work out our disagreements in a constructive manner."

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Italy, VN boost economic ties, tourist strategies

Rome (VNA) - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said on July 14 that Italy wanted to strengthen relations with Vietnam .

Berlusconi made his remarks during a Rome reception for Vietnamese Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung, who is in Italy on an official visit.

The two leaders said they were pleased to see business activities growing between the two countries and assigned relevant bodies to foster the development.

The Italian PM supported Hung's idea of developing co-operation in education and training, and television to help promote Vietnam 's image in Italy and vice versa.

Hung also met the Italian Minister of Tourism, Michela Brambilla, to discuss measures to promote co-operation in a field seen as economically strategic for both sides.

The visiting deputy PM said Vietnam would like Italians to invest in tourism infrastructure, business-management training - and organising tours between the two countries.

On July 14, Vietnam News Agency General Director Tran Mai Huong and Italian News Agency (ANSA) CEO and General Manager Giuseppe Cerbone signed a co-operation agreement during Hung's visit to Rome.

The two agencies agreed to exchange news, photos, high-level delegations and journalists to increase mutual understanding.

The heads of the two news agencies said the signing would play an active role in promoting bilateral relations between the two countries - and the two agencies.

Huong and Cerbone also discussed the possibility of exchanging multimedia products.

On July 13 in Milan , Deputy PM Hung witnessed the signing of an agreement that enables diplomatic passport holders to travel without visas. Another was signed on debt exchange.

Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Cuong and Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini also signed a memorandum on Italy 's involvement in activities to celebrate the 1,000th year of Thang Long-Hanoi.-Enditem

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US paper highlights US-Vietnam relationship

The Hill, a US congressional daily on its July 14 issue reviewed historical milestones in bilateral relations. Since February 14, 1994 when President Bill Clinton lifted the trade embargo, the United States has become Vietnam’s biggest market. Economic reforms have lifted millions out of poverty in what is one of the world’s outstanding records on poverty reduction.

The paper wrote:

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Death toll of typhoon Conson in Philippines rises to 22

Hanoi (VNA) – The death toll of typhoon Conson that ripped across the Philippines ’ main island on July 14 has climbed to 22 while 57 people were reported missing and 20 others were injured.

The typhoon, packing maximum wind gusts of 120 kilometres an hour, uprooted trees, damaged traffic infrastructures and caused large track of blackout.

Millions of people will have to live with the power outage in at least two days, said a spokesperson of the Philippine Electric Corporation.

According to the Philippine Metrological Service, the typhoon will get stronger and head west into the South China in the next 24-48 hours.-Enditem